Could Russia's Tolbachik volcano be the next Eyjafjallajökull?

All week the Tolbachik volcano in Russia has been showing strong signs of activity. Initially the alert was raised from yellow to orange. As of today, the alert is now at red, the highest warning designation.

Image of Tolbachik Volcano's eruption on Nov. 29, 2012

D.Melnikov/KVERT

Yesterday Digital Journal reported that Russia's Plosky Tolbachik volcano had been upgraded to an orange alert. Today, the KVERT website (Kamchatka Volcanic Eruption Response Team) has again raised the volcano alert, now it is at a red designation, which is the strongest volcanic activity level and some media reports are suggesting it could become another Eyjafjallajökull.

According to KVERT, a red alert level means "Eruption is forecast to be imminent with significant emission of ash into the atmosphere likely," or, "Eruption is underway with significant emission of ash into the atmosphere."

This strong eruption is leading some to ask whether or not Plosky Tolbachik may become the next Eyjafjallajökull as its spewing of ash and lava intensifies.

Olga Girina, expert of the Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, indicated Tolbachik can "turn out to be as powerful as the eruption of the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajökull," Pravda, a Russian publication, reported.

Back in 2010, Eyjafjallajökull caused the shutdown of several airports throughout Europe, which led to global disruption across many industries.

This eruption is Tolbachik's wake-up call after 36 years. Wired reported the magnitude of this week's volcanic eruption activity is still uncertain at this point.

Whether or not Tolbachik's eruption will cause the same type of disruption Eyjafjallajökull's mighty awakening caused, remains to be seen. Experts are carefully monitoring this volcanic eruption.